Taylor Yelvington, a fashion design and merchandising major from Stuttgart, was one of 45 Mississippi State University students who attended the 2024 interdisciplinary Global Game Changers study abroad trip to Italy.
Participants ventured through Milan, the Amalfi Coast, Florence and ended the trip in Rome. Students from six of the university’s nine colleges traveled abroad with customized itineraries specific to their field of study, meeting daily to enjoy broader cultural activities as a group, according to a news release.
Faculty advisers from MSU’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, College of Architecture, Art and Design, Bagley College of Engineering and College of Business include Gallery Director Lori Neuenfeldt, Assistant Teaching Professor Aswathy Rai, Lecturer Rachel Woodward, Associate Professor Harish Chander, Assistant Professor Erik Markin and former MSU Associate Professor Charles Freeman, who coordinated and hosted the study abroad trip.
“This is a life changing trip for students,” said Freeman, the trip’s faculty lead. “They can study abroad with their peers from campus who soon turn into friends and see sights that you maybe wouldn’t be able to see as a regular tourist. Many of my students come back from these trips saying it changed their perspective on everything in life.”